Thursday, April 11, 2013

The winter sports season was recently completed for NCAA Division III athletics and the latest set of Learfield Director’s Cup standings for Division III have been announced. Calvin is ranked ninth in the latest set of standings with 508 points. The Knights garnered 199.5 points during the recent winter sports season. The Learfield Director’sCup is based on points earned by teams that compete in NCAA Championship events and is presented annually by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the best overall collegiate athletics program in the country. The Learfield Director’s Cup race is held at the NCAA I, II and III levels and also for NAIA institutions. Scoring points for Calvin during the winter season were the Calvin women’s basketball team (25 points), men’s basketball (64 points), women’s indoor track and field (47.5 points) and women’s swimming and diving team (63 points). During the fall sports season, Calvin produced 308.5 points as its men’s and women’s soccer teams, volleyball team and men’s and women’s cross country team all scored points. Calvin has now had nine of its 21 varsity sports teams score points in the Director’s Cup chase. The competition will conclude at the end of the spring sports season with a final set of standings set to be released in June.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

In Calvin athletics, what was the best play of the year? Who were the male and female newcomers of the year? What was the most exceptional performance in an individual event? Come to the arena on May 8 to find out. On Wednesday, May 8, at 7 p.m. in the Van Noord Arena, the Calvin C Club welcomes student-athletes, coaches and fans of the Knights to an evening of celebrating Calvin athletics. There will be desserts and refreshments, trophy displays, a “Year in Review” video and the presentation of 13 awards, culminating in the Tiemersma and Beré Awards for female and male athlete of the year. Registration for current Calvin student-athletes is available through their coaches, and registration for all others is available online now! Cost is just $10 for guests (reduced to $5 for current students and C Club members). Business attire is desired.

Don’t miss this historic first-ever night of Calvin athletic awards—RSVP by May 1!

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

The final NCAA III statistics for women’s basketball are in the books and Calvin has come out on top in two team statistical categories. Calvin finished as the national leader in field goal percentage, connecting on 46.5 percent of its field goal attempts throughout the year. The Knights also led the nation in assists per-game, averaging 18.4 assists-per-contest. Calvin also finished fifth in blocked shots per-game (6.4), sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.12) and seventh in scoring margin (23.3). Individually, senior Carissa Verkaik finished fifth nationally in field goal percentage (.580) and sixth in blocked shots per-game (3.33). In addition, the two final national polls have come out and Calvin is ranked 12th in one national poll and 14th in another. Calvin is ranked 12th in the final WBCA Division III Coaches poll of the year and 14th in the final D3hoops.com Top 25 poll.

Monday, March 18, 2013

BEAVERTON, ORre. — Calvin College senior center Carissa Verkaik has been named the 2013 Women’s DIII News Player of the Year. It’s the second straight season she has earned the honor. Verkaik led the Knights to a 23-4 overall record and a bid in the NCAA tournament. She averaged 20 points and 9.2 rebounds and shot 58 percent from the floor. Her season highs included a 37-point performance against Adrian and 17 rebounds in a win over Thomas More. She was named Player of the Year in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association for the fourth straight season. Verkaik headlines the 2013 WDIIIN All-American team, where she was joined on the first team by Sam Barber of Wisconsin Stevens Point, Sarah Collins of Babson, Jill Woerner from Catholic University and Simpson’s Kate Nielsen. WDIIIN has named a Player of the Year every season since 1994. This past weekend, Verkaik was named the D3hoops.com Player of the Year and recipient of the prestigious Jostens Trophy.

Saturday, March 16, 2013

The awards continue to roll in for Calvin senior Carissa Verkaik. On Saturday afternoon, the Holland native was named the D3hoops.com National Player of the Year. The announcement was made at the NCAA III Women’s Basketball finals Saturday afternoon at Hope College by D3hoops.com’s Pat Coleman. In addition, Verkaik has been named to the D3hoops.com All-America first team, marking the third straight year she has done so. She was also a third team D3hoops.com All-American in 2010. It concludes an eventful week for Verkaik who was named the recipient of the Jostens Trophy on Friday, a State Farm Division III All-American on Thursday as well as a finalist for the State Farm Division III Player of the Year Award (set to be announced on April 8). She was also named the D3hoops.com Great Lakes Regional Player of the Year earlier in the week.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Calvin College senior Carissa Verkaik Verkaik has been named the recipient of the prestigious Jostens Trophy which is presented by the Rotary Club of Salem, Va. The Jostens Trophy is awarded to an outstanding Division III men’s and women’s basketball player who excels on the floor, in the classroom and in the community. Verkaik is the second individual in Calvin women’s basketball history to receive the award as Lisa Winkle was also so honored in 2007. Calvin is the first school to have two Jostens Trophy recipients in women’s basketball.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

For the second consecutive year, Carissa Verkaik has been named a Division III State Farm All-American by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. In addition, Verkaik has been named one of three finalists for the State Farm/WBCA Division III Player of the Year Award. The other two finalists are Sam Barber of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and Kate Nielson of Simpson College. State Farm and the WBCA present the player of the year award annually to the top player in each of five WBCA membership divisions (NCAA Divisions II, III, NAIA, junior/community college and high school), while the State Farm Wade Trophy is presented annually to the NCAA Division I player of the year. The winners will be announced during the third annual WBCA Awards Show on Monday, April 8, in New Orleans. This event is part of the WBCA National Convention and is held in conjunction with the NCAA® Women’s Final Four®.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

For the third straight year, Calvin College senior Carissa Verkaik has been named the D3hoops.com Great Lakes Region Player of the Year. A native of Holland and a graduate of Holland Christian High School, she has also been named to the D3hoops.com Great Lakes All-Region first team for the fourth straight year. She was recently named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player for the fourth straight year. She averaged 20.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocks a game. She completed her career as Calvin’s all-time leader in points (2,236), rebounds (1,071) and blocked shots (440). She is now currently ranked third on the all-time NCAA III women’s basketball list in blocked shots and 14th in points.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Calvin College holds the lead in the latest set of MIAA Commissioner’s Cup standings as well as in the standings for the MIAA Men’s and Women’s All-Sports Awards. Calvin has a first place total of 147 points in the MIAA Commissioner’s Cup standings with Hope second with 126 points. In the men’s individual (all-sports) standings, Calvin has 68 points with Hope second with 56 points. In the women’s individual (all-sports) standings, Calvin has 79 points with Hope second with 70 points. This year, Calvin has captured nine MIAA regular season championships, winning league titles in men’s and women’s cross country, men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, men’s golf, men’s and women’s basketball and women’s swimming and diving.

Monday, March 04, 2013

For the second consecutive year, Calvin College senior Carissa Verkaik Verkaik has been named one of 11 women’s finalists for the Jostens Trophy which is presented by the Rotary Club of Salem, Va. The Jostens Trophy is awarded to an outstanding Division III men’s and women’s basketball player who excels on the floor, in the classroom and in the community. The Salem Rotary Club Jostens Trophy Committee employs a numerical rating to narrow the list of finalists so that the decision can be made on the most objective basis possible.Last year, Aris Wurtz of Ripon and Taylor Simpson of Chicago took home the trophies. A native of Holland and a graduate of Holland Christian High School, Verkaik has been a leader on the basketball court, in the classroom and in the community. As a basketball player, she was recently named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player for the fourth straight year. She averaged 20.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocks a game. She completed her career as Calvin’s all-time leader in points (2,236), rebounds (1,071) and blocked shots (440). She is now currently ranked third on the all-time NCAA III women’s basketball list in blocked shots and 14th in points.